


Sugar Petals and Tea Leaves

by lehavashadowsun, Tress13



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Butler Cafe, Butler Cafe AU, F/M, I don't know what I'm doing, Maybe Modern Thedas?, Modern Thedas, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-07
Updated: 2017-07-07
Packaged: 2018-11-28 22:15:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11427297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lehavashadowsun/pseuds/lehavashadowsun, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tress13/pseuds/Tress13
Summary: An Upscale cafe! Elegant Butlers! Mysterious Elves! No, this is a pretty out-there idea. . . but we are running with it!Shorts and drabbles from two Dragon Age fans who enjoy elves - even those with a distaste for tea - and butlers and were crazy enough to combine the two!If anyone else wants to join us feel free to contact us for further details. ; )





	1. First Time

**Author's Note:**

> Here is the post on Tumblr that started it all:  
> https://thema-sal-shiral.tumblr.com/post/161568153820/thema-sal-shiral-i-have-a-challenge-for-the
> 
> So come have a cup of tea, coffee, or hot chocolate! Grab a frilly cake, and enjoy!

There is ivy crawling up the side of the building- a strangely green sight in the middle of the sleek steel and harsh concrete of the city. The whole structure seems out of place as if it is a grand house built during a forgotten time, lingering even as skyscrapers and apartments surround it. It is a lovely place to be sure but almost has an aura of loneliness clinging to it. "Almost" because there is a crowded line spilling out the front door and around the side of the building.

Honestly, I'm not too keen to be here. I heard rave reviews of the desserts and tea, and I have a sweet tooth and enjoy a cup well enough... but this isn't exactly my scene. I grew up in the outskirts of the Free Marches and as a newcomer to the city I'm not use to such crowded, fancy tea houses complete with butlers in tails. One of my first friends in the city, Leliana Rossignol, invited me to join her for a very rare, very exclusive reservation. Leliana is a contact through work who is helping me adjust to the lifestyle of my new home. She apparently knows an employee of the cafe and was able to reserve a much sought after table. I'm glad to be spending time with my friend although the location makes me jittery. I take a deep breath and straighten the folds of my skirt before edging through the door and around the velvet ropes marking the start of the line.

The foyer is lit by a crystal chandelier and I am surrounded by warm, carved wood and luxurious fabrics. I am already starting to feel out of place.

"Excuse me, miss," a deep male voice sharply interrupts my internal worries, "you will need to head to the back of the line without a reservation."

I turn to meet the piercing gold eyes of an astonishingly tall elvhen man standing by a door draped in brocade curtains. He is attractive and wearing a well tailored coat and tails. Surprisingly he has dark green facial tattoos - vallaslin, rarely seen in the city. The thing that bothers me, and the reason I'm uncomfortable being here, however is the judgement I can feel radiating off of him. Narrowing my gaze I pull out of my purse the reservation note given to me by Leliana. Thick, quality paper with a date, time, and Leliana's name in beautiful calligraphy.

"Ah. You must be Ms. Rossignol's friend," says a smooth, inviting voice as a second elvhen man steps through the doorway. I shift my gaze from the first judgmental butler to see... oh. Tall and with broad shoulders that fill out the suit as well as the first man, this butler is shockingly bald. I don't normally find bald men particularly attractive but for this man it just highlights the elegant lines of his face - sharp cheekbones, strong jaw, and plush lips. I meet startlingly blue-grey eyes. His expression seems strangely guarded but there is a sparkling intelligence there and something more I cannot decipher. It feels more like I am standing before the master of this place instead of a cafe butler.

"I am Solas, if there are to be introductions," he says with a quirk of his lips. He bows ever so slightly while holding out a large, long-fingered hand in a pristine white glove, " and I am entirely at your service."


	2. First Time - Continued

The cafe already hosted several tables, young women occupying each table of differing races, and a few young men at one table. Butlers spun and danced on the polished marble floors, trays on hand, delivering drink and food with the chiming of silver bells. It was quiet, voices low in the intimate setting, the clink of silverware and porcelain merely an afterthought. Solas weaved through the tables, slipping in and out of the dance as he took his woman to her seat. The turn on the heel was almost military in precision, coattails fluttering about his thighs.

“My lady, your seat.” The slow glide of a hand directed her to the plush velvet chair, black in color and set into purple heartwood. A step to the side, fingers sensually curling around the curved edge of the chair, and he pulled it out for her. The elvhen man added a smile, what seemed perfectly normal on the surface, but hungry and animalistic underneath, perfectly crafted to make her flush. They loved it when he did it, hints of the beast that lived under the face of a genteel man.

Solas helped her into her chair with a proffered hand. “Would you care for a menu?” His voice pitched low, private and warm in her ear. “You may also leave your care in my hands,” Was her ear turning red, sweeping back from her cheeks? “and I will select your courses today with utmost care.”

“I promise it will be… delectable.”


End file.
